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Wilhoit's Law

"Conservatism consists of exactly one proposition. There must be in-groups whom the law protects but does not bind, alongside out-groups whom the law binds but does not protect."



“For my friends, everything; for my enemies, the law.”

https://plas.princeton.edu/news/2023/do-latin-america’s-top-...


My favorite thing about Wilhoit's law, aside from the law itself in its elegant simplicity, is that it is by Frank Wilhoit, but not that Frank Wilhoit (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_M._Wilhoit). Instead, it is from a one-off, though typically excellent, comment on Crooked Timber (https://crookedtimber.org/2018/03/21/liberals-against-progre...).


My favorite thing about Wilhoit's Law is I worked with Frank Wilhoit for several years and still occasionally meet up with him. He's one of the most interesting and insightful people I know. He loves phrasing things in an unconventional way to encourage people to think about what's being said instead of thinking about the next thing they're about to say.


Yeah, it's a pretty great coincidence.




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